What is setting up? That is when someone you know finds a person they know and arranges for you two to have a first date, or at least meet.
The person doing the setting up is the filter for both people. Therefore, if you come to them asking to help you meet someone, I would expect any hints of desperation that would come with the asking to be filtered out - but it's really up to the person, not to you. Simultaneously, you have to consider what this person thinks will make a good couple. That can be an asset or a liability. If someone has a track record of picking train wreck women for himself or for others, one can expect that he will get you similar results.